One Last Time
by Miz Thang
Summary: Written for the Angel Ficathon Two. It’s been a few months since the end of Not Fade Away. Angel’s in New York, helping Faith out with his blue shadow, Illyria. Angel gen. Everything else is a surprise.
1. New York, New York

**One Last Time**

**Notes/Summary:** Written for the Angel Ficathon Two. Requirements will be posted at the end of the story. It's been a few months since the end of Not Fade Away. Angel's in New York, helping Faith out with his blue shadow, Illyria. Something's rising and it can only lead to…goodness? I seriously doubt that. And this fic is none pairing, on Angel's part at least.

**Chapter One: New York, New York**

_"Sometimes, I question my own sanity." _

"Only sometimes? I thought this was just the tip of the ice berg for you."

"Yeah, well, you killed the dragon. Didn't I say that **I** wanted to kill the dragon?"

"That you did. Partly why I did it."

"Ass."

"Poof."

"Could you two stop the yapping, and get back to the hacking before I pass out?"

Angel thinks about that moment a lot. There's no real reason behind it. It's just one moment of witty dialogue among thousands; many that he's remembering stem from the war. But there's just something about that moment that makes everything seem like it came full circle. He spent all that time…worrying, wondering. Doubting in his redemption, what he fought for. Even now, he's not thinking about redemption. The fight never ends, and this is only proof. Even if the Powers That Be thought he deserved to have a beating heart and a chance at a second life, he wouldn't be able to leave. It's in him now. The fight. And he continues to fight because of something he told everyone else.

He's going to make their deaths matter.

_"After we are finished here, I want to provide Wesley with a proper burial-one a warrior deserves." _

"Don't think we'll be finished anytime soon, though."

"Where's Gunn?"

"He's-Gunn? Gunn!"

Funny how only a moment later, everything changed. Gunn was missing. That was some kind of given. Demons kept coming, and Illyria kept killing. She watched their backs as Spike and Angel searched to at least find their friend's dead body. That would be a kind of reassurance. One they needed desperately at that moment. Now, it seems a bit trivial. They should've known he'd die, lost in the sea of bodies from battle. Only then, when it had been real and just happening, it wasn't a great feeling.

_"He is lost, and we must go." _

"I can't. Not without him."

"Angel, think here. The only thing you're going to get out of searching this alley in the middle of a war is yourself as a pile of dust. Got that?"

"I **am** thinking, Spike."

"Act like it then. Right now's not the time to go chasing ghosts, Peaches."

He left. He tried to tell himself logically as they fought their way out of the alley, because all they needed at the moment was to get out, that he'd come back, find Gunn. And he did. Days later, when the demons had been called back, the only proof that the Powers cared was that the demons couldn't leave the alley, and the three searched. He couldn't be found.

_"Well, damn. Almost thought ya'll forgot about lil' old me."_

Mainly because he didn't need to be found.

_"Gunn?" _

"That is not Gunn. A demon now inhabits his form."

The worst moment Angel had since finding out that Wesley was dead? Finding out less than three days later that Gunn was a vampire. As much as he hadn't wanted to believe Illyria, there it was in black and white. Feral yellow eyes glared at them, and he was wearing a toothy grin, showing off the new canines.

Amazingly, Spike stepped up first, pulling out a stake.

_"Guess this is the end of the road." _

"For who? You, or me?"

"Maybe the both of us. Who knows?"

Another amazing thing? Angel still wanted to save Gunn. Even if he wasn't there to be saved anymore. Which made it a good thing that Spike decided to deal with Gunn; maybe on some level it occurred to him that now was not the time for Angel to deal with it.

_"How about you and me have a go, Charlie?" _

"I can dig that. You're going down."

Or maybe he was just being Spike, looking for a fight. Looking for something to bring down. His way of dealing.

_"You know the amazing thing, Spike? It's your fault." _

"What?"

"You heard me. It's your fault. Don't pay much attention to blood stains, do you?"

The implication set, Gunn took off through the streets of Los Angeles. And then Spike turned to look at him and Illyria. That was when Angel finally came back to the alley, understanding the past few minutes. Gunn had been sired by Spike, unintentionally, but…

_"I have to go after him." _

"Spike-"

"He's mine to deal with. Angel, get out of Los Angeles. There's nothing left for you here. Me on the other hand? Got a vamp to deal with…kinda feels like old times with Dru and her mistakes."

"Like you?"

"Ha bloody ha."

Spike left then. He paused at the end of the alley, closed his eyes and stretching his senses, before taking a left turn and speeding down the street.

Funny how, for once, Spike was right. There was nothing left for Angel in Los Angeles anymore. Maybe that's why Angel came all the way to New York. Maybe that was why he, Illyria and Faith did the dirty work Giles didn't want his Slayers involved in. As their experts.

Angel stands from his seat by his desk. They even gave him a neat little office. Not as great as Wolfram and Hart, what with the being highly expensive, but good enough. Faith accused him of using it to brood, and Illyria was kind of handy with research, science, and the technicalities of magic. It was almost like Los Angeles. Almost like Angel Investigations. Almost like having Cordelia, Doyle and Wesley. Almost.

-

_It's just my luck that the day after Wood and I call it quits, Giles wants to talk shop in a conference meeting. Great joy that Giles is in New York._

Any toddler can catch the tension and anger that rolls off Faith in waves. It's like second skin, and she's been wearing it for a long time, except for when she's around Illyria, Angel, or both. The occasional calls from Spike as he travels to find Gunn is a blessing also, especially when they interrupt a potentially hairy argument with Wood.

Truthfully, she's counting down the hours until Giles hops on that plane at John F. Kennedy and returns to the good old mother country across the pond. All this New Council/Slayer stuff is getting old really quick and Faith just wants to have fun. She wants to patrol, like Sunnydale. She wants a new Big Bad every week, one that isn't paperwork on a new Slayer.

She pushes the door open to the New York Headquarters. It's nice and everything, but completely not her style. Next, they'd start expecting her to dress conservatively and get formal with the Slayers. She can't even stand half the "I'm a Slayer, I can kick your ass" girls this place crawls with. Well, that is unless they're from Sunnydale's match up against the First. Which doesn't happen to be a lot of the girls.

"Faith! Mr. Wood and Mr. Giles are waiting for you with the others calling in." Wood's secretary calls out as Faith reaches the desk.

"Thanks, May." Faith likes May. May doesn't think Faith should be Miss Lehane, which is always a good sign in Faith's book. The last thing she needs is for someone to call her that, acting like she's superior, like she has some kind of authority.

"What's shakin'?" She calls out, grinning from ear to ear as she enters the conference room. Instantly she can tell that Wood's uncomfortable with her presence and she guesses it might hurt a bit that they didn't work out.

"Faith. Now we can begin." Giles sits down and presses the speaker button.

"Here's the basic run down, Giles," Willow starts. "Dawn went out on a date-with Andrew, but I digress-and they never came back home. First, Buffy wanted a locator spell on Andrew, because she wanted to kill him. And we found him alright."

"Lemme guess…he wasn't really able to tell you where Dawn is." Faith says.

"He won't really be telling anyone anything anymore, actually." Willow replies. "He's kinda dead. B-but there was a symbol on his forehead. Buffy told me that before Sunnydale, Dawn had a diary this woman at her mom's gallery had given Dawn."

"The symbol was on the book?" Giles asks.

"Bingo. So, we look up the symbol-nothing. The coven is researching in England. But the reason I asked Faith to come, even if she's leaving the Council, was to get Angel and Illyria to help. Maybe even Spike."

_Should've known there was a catch._

"I dunno 'bout that, Willow. Angel hasn't really felt in the giving mood with Buffy for the past five months."

"Faith, this isn't about Buffy and Angel's issues. It's about Dawn."

"Not making any promises, but we'll talk." Faith pushes her chair back and stands. "I'm gonna clean out my office. Have a nice flight, Giles."

"It was nice to see you, Faith." Giles says as she makes her exit.

"Same here, G-man." Faith calls him that in this instant, when she's not sure if she ever has before, because she's fond of Giles. Maybe before she thought he couldn't see past his Buffy-shaped haze, but she's grown a bit. He might have cared for her the same if she hadn't gone off the deep end.

_And here we are, thinking about Wesley. You…kind of made your peace. Let it go._

But she can't. Because she knows they hadn't really. The entire hubbub going on with Angelus made it impossible.

She goes to her office, which she really hates right now, and asks May to bring a box. In no time, May arrives and she thanks the secretary and puts her belongings in the box. Kind of impersonal; the one box isn't even full.

She calls out to May, "Have fun, May." And then she leaves the New York Headquarters of the New Council for what she hopes is the last time in her life.

-

Illyria stands before the straight line of Slayers before her. It almost feels as if she has an army, ready to follow her into a battle for their lives, in her honor. She knows she should stop having these thoughts, as she has reduced herself to fighting alongside Angel and other allies for good in Wesley's honor, but at times she cannot help thoughts such as these. They were a semblance of normalcy.

"One hundred push ups," Illyria says, only to receive groans from half of the teenagers. Faith awlways tells her that discipline is in order when they make the unwanted noises and she decides to increase the work out. "Make it two."

The girls learn their lesson, not making a sound as they drop to their knees and begin to use their arms, pushing themselves up and counting for her benefit. "One, two, three…"

Fighting with the Slayers often reminds her of fighting Spike. They make the same noises but Angel tells her to try to not break them in half. It's not like it's Spike, so she shouldn't want to hit them or anything. She's only supposed to do this for practice.

"Lyrie, we're gonna blow this joint." Faith appears in the doorway. The training facilities are separate from the main building. "I just called Angel. Told him our newest case. Our last case."

Illyria turns from Faith to the girls. "You are relieved." She then follows the brunette slayer out the room as the girls let go of their front and fall in tired heaps after the one hundred twenty ninth push up.

"What is the case?"

"Dawn. She's missing and her…boyfriend…was found dead. Giles just gave me a ring. Willow's hacking skills got us a lead. Her passport was used to catch a plane to JFK." Faith says in explanation.

"Dawn. Buffy's sister, Dawn?"

"Yep."

"And Angel agreed to help find her?" Illyria asks as they reach the main hall. A bell rings and they have to move through the hall filled with teenaged girls.

"He said it's about Dawn, not Buffy. I'm kinda inclined to agree. I just have to call Spike, see if he's willing to take a break on his vamp hunt."

"I don't actually think that'll be happening. Spike's in Australia." Angel says as he crosses the path from the main building, a box in hand. "He's already on a break, helping out against a set of vampires trying to take over a town. Problem is Gunn's in with the pack."

"So then he isn't really taking a break. They're just in his way." Faith responds.

"Something like that." Angel replies. "Explain this thing with Dawn a little more."

"Andrew the boyfriend-as weird as that sounds-is dead. There was a symbol. B recognized it. Linked it to Dawn. Dawn's M.I.A. Passport leads her to New York. Locator spell can't find her. Our mission, if we choose to accept it-find out where Dawnie got taken 'cause we all know she ran into trouble."

"Oh. And here I was thinking it'd be hard."

-

There's something that could be said about her current situation, like maybe, "Old habits die hard." Or you can say, "Once a key, always a key." Just for laughs, it can be, "You can take the girl away from trouble, but you can't keep the trouble from following." Willow would probably say that.

Dawn's in a cage. Can you believe that? Whoever the pricks were that snatched her up decided that putting her in a cage was a good option. Can we please step into this century? They could have at least locked her in a room.

A sob racks her body as she remembers how it all happened. She and Andrew had just left one of those clubs where, oddly, he had connections to get them past security with no hassle, when they showed out of nowhere.

He tried, he really did. He wanted to protect her, keep her safe. But then they beat him down, grabbed her and she had to watch as one of them bit him, drained him, and another carved a symbol she still remembered on his forehead.

And then everything went dark.

She thinks Buffy probably wanted to kill Andrew before they found his body. She thinks, hopes that now she's worried about finding Dawn, keeping her safe. She hopes that Buffy will do any and everything to find her.

Plus, she really wants out of this cage.


	2. Searching For Dawn

**One Last Time**

**Notes/Summary:** Written for the Angel Ficathon Two. Requirements will be posted at the end of the story. It's been a few months since the end of Not Fade Away. Angel's in New York, helping Faith out with his blue shadow, Illyria. Something's rising and it can only lead to…goodness? I seriously doubt that. And this fic is no pairing, on Angel's part at least.

**Chapter Two: Searching For Dawn**

There's only the sound of water dripping from the ceiling to the floor.

_Drip, drip, drip…_

She watches, as if entranced, for a while, but soon grows bored and resumes jangling the lock on the cage. What she wouldn't give for a bit of super strength right now.

She's tired, but she doesn't trust her surroundings enough to sleep. She doesn't understand what's going on, why she was taken, why they felt they had to kill Andrew. What they could have possibly accomplished by making sure he never saw another day.

She's scared; no surprise there. She's alone, and she doesn't know where Buffy is, or what she's doing, or if she's coming, so how can she not be scared? Being alone sucks big time. Especially when she knows that wherever she is, she is definitely not safe.

_"Um, Dawn, can I ask you something?" _

"Depends. Is it going to be a long drawn-out explanation before you get to the point? Because, if it is, don't bother."

"No. Promise."

"Okay, Go for it."

She wraps her arms around her knees, smiling a bit. If she had known what Andrew's intentions had been, she'd have freaked out. Now, she only wants to go back in time and relive it. Kind of weird, though. Her and Andrew. She'd never have imagined it, but there it was.

_"Andrew, what the hell was that?" _

"I kissed you?"

"I caught that. There was that whole…thing…where your lips were attached to mine. Just…why?"

"B-because I like you."

"You like me?"

"Yeah. I mean, you're…you're pretty, you're really smart, you know five ancient languages and you know a lot of other stuff, too. You're a great watcher-in-training, and you're not scared to go out fighting, even if there's a really big possibility you'll get killed. You're funny, quirky, cute, nice…what?"

"I just…I'm still surprised, I guess."

"Is it really that much of a surprise I like you when you're perfect? You're like the perfect-what was that for?"

"That was reciprocated crushage."

"Reciprocated?"

"Yeah. I can't like you back?"

Dawn lets go of her knees and leans back on the bars behind her. She lets out a deep breath. This whole thing where she's kidnapped for everything got old the first time it happened. Now it's just annoying, even if being put in a cage is a new concept.

-

"Let me give you a few highlights about Dawn, Illie." Faith says as she and Illyria walk through Central Park. They're patrolling, not yet beginning the search for Dawn. The search for Dawn is going to be the biggest thing of the week, and will be better spent in the daytime. That way, Faith will have something to do, being unemployed as of earlier today. She's kind of mad that Angel kept his office. But, oh, well. As long as he knows she isn't taking a step in there…unless she and May are going to hang out.

"Is it vital for her discovery?" Illyria asks, ice blue eyes scanning the bushes around them in anticipation of a fight. She's learning, at her own pace, but she is. She'd found some kind of…peace within herself and acknowledged that the shell, Fred, had been worthy of her possession, and had valuable assets. Illyria uses them when needed; she sees that Faith and Angel appreciate it every once in a while if she does something they termed "Fred-like." She thinks of it as her bringing them some type of skewed solace.

"Don't actually know. It might be." Faith replies. "One: Dawn's trouble prone. I know, you might think I meant like accident-prone or something, like clumsy. But-no. People like to kidnap Dawn. People like to threaten Dawn. People like to use Dawn to open portals to other dimensions."

"Portals?" Illyria echoes, something sparking in her memory. She remembers something, vaguely, something that opened dimensions in her time.

"It's some kind of thing. Buffy tried explaining it to me. I still don't get it a bit." Faith shakes her head. "Anyway, Dawn's supposedly not real up until three years ago. She's supposed to be something called the Key-"

"The Key. I know of it. The Key's existence is more ancient than my own. The Old Ones held it in possession for millennia, and kept it from the abomination, Glorificus. Once in danger, a monastery was established to look after it in case we were incapable. After our banishment, they vowed to protect it with their lives. And they did. They eventually transformed it, and sent it to Buffy…as her sister." Illyria says, as all the knowledge of its history seems to leak to her brain.

"Oh." Faith blinks, fully having expected that she'd be the all-knowing one in this situation. "Huh."

Illyria says nothing in response. She does not tell Faith that Dawn, even if human, is still only means to an end. She does not tell her that Dawn has an expiration date, even if not as the pure energy she is. She also doesn't say that there is only one use that will eradicate the girl.

And while she digests this information that the brunette she'd met on many occasions was the treasure from long ago, knows it's only a matter of time. She amuses herself with the thought that it's about to get very interesting.

-

Angel takes a seat and picks up the phone. He dials a set of seven numbers and waits patiently as it rings.

"Tom here." A voice says as the phone on the other end is answered.

"Tom…it's Angel."

"Oh. Gotta go-"

"You could hang up, but that wouldn't be a smart idea." Angel cuts him off. "For one, I can see you from across the room."

He watches as Tom looks around with nervous energy. Of course he's nervous. Ever since Angel's returned to New York, he's been nervous. Angel always brings trouble with him and Tom is a demon that prefers to avoid it.

"Yeah? Well, w-what do you want? I told you last week I ain't a sneak no more."

"And I didn't believe you then, so why start now?" Angel replies. "A girl kidnapped in Rome. She was brought here. Why?"

"You know, Angel, I'm really not at liberty to discuss this-"

"_Why_?"

"She's the Key, ain't she? That ancient, portal-opening energy everyone's been looking for since Glory's been off the map. If someone's looking for ritual fun, then what's better than her? And let's not forget that she's the Slayer's sister, made from her in fact. They have the same blood. She's potent, man. That's all I have to say. So can I go now?"

"Yeah." Angel hangs up his cell phone and sits for a moment, deep in thought. Then he stands and exits the bar. He's already starting to get a very bad feeling about this.

-

"It's really quite amazing what your mind comes up with, Illyria." Wesley says, appearing next to her out of thin air.

"Go away." Simple words coming from Illyria. Maybe it's because she's tired and annoyed. She's been dealing with this ghost for five months. At first, she thought it meant there was hope of him returning, and then she realized it only meant he was angry and was going to bother her for all eternity, like he'd accuse her of doing to him.

"It's been five months. I'd think that by now you'd have realized it's a moot point to tell me so." He catches the dagger that comes his way; he's obviously not your typical angry spirit, being corporeal. "That's awfully rude."

"Do you not have anyone else to haunt? I am thinking." Illyria replies, giving up.

"About the Key. It's fascinating what monks do in their spare time these days. And, by the way, about that haunting business, I can be in several places at once. You'll learn what I mean." Wesley pauses, "Of course, by then it may very well be too late, so it would be imperative for you to learn why now."

"Your visits become increasingly infuriating." Illyria states. She stands to face him. "What do you hope to accomplish?"

"There is no hope, Illyria. And also, there's no reason for me to hope when I've already accomplished what I wanted. Besides, I'm dead."

He fades away then, as always, and she's left standing in her room, her mind trying to explain what the imposter is, because she is adamantly sure that it isn't Wesley.

-

The shot to the back of his head is an unwelcome surprise. And not only because it's a surprise, but also because it kind of hurts. It brings him to his knees and stars and sparks seem to shoot in his eyesight. He's seconds away from asking where they came from until it occurs to him that he's the only one seeing them. He swings blindly, attempting to get up and only connects once.

He's mostly sure that this has everything to do with Dawn and finding her.

-

Faith enters the apartment with a sigh and ignores the fact that Illyria is in her room chattering. She's used to the Old One's tendency to talk to herself, hold fights and conversations. It's been five months; how could she not?

The phone rings, shrill and loud in the virtually empty apartment. She stares at it, surprised. No one ever calls them. Ever. It was like an unwritten rule. No one from the Council can call those people they shouldn't associate with, but do.

After the third ring, it occurs to her to answer it. She picks it up, placing it by her ear and heaving a sigh. "Hello?"

"Faith?"

She frowns at the voice, a bit confused. She hasn't heard from him since they had that nice debriefing in Italy that turned out to be a fight between herself and Buffy. Her Scooby membership card expired the moment she'd let it out that she really did wish she'd killed Buffy. Oh well. It's not like she hadn't meant it. Yeah, she was aware that she was redeemed, but a lot of good people in the world hadn't liked Buffy, so what was the big deal? Oh, wait…was it because she'd actually tried to kill her in the past?

"Xander?"

"Uh, yeah, hi. I'm calling, because of…because of Buffy. Um, she won't call herself, what with the thing between her and Angel, and the-"

"Me still wishing I'd killed her thing? No big. It might be better that you called." Faith answered. "What's up?"

"How's the search for Dawn going?"

"Dunno yet. I'm waiting for Angel to get back with the info. How are things going for you?" She asks, sitting on the couch. She almost feels as if he's sitting in front of her.

"They're…good. Great even. Africa's great."

"Good."

"Yeah. How's New York?"

"Well, you probably know more than half of it. I quit working officially for the Council, I help Angel and Illyria, I dumped Wood on his ass-"

"You and Wood are over?" Xander asks.

Faith frowns, even though a smile is threatening to overcome her face. "Yeah. Interested?"

"Faith-"

"Joking. It's fine." Faith stares up at the ceiling, counting the few cracks that are there.

"It's not. I called because of the Dawn thing, and because I was thinking. About you. And I was wondering what you were doing." Xander mumbles something else and Faith's grin widens.

"Xander, did I hear you say something?"

"Say something? No. All I said was that I was thinking about you-"

"And that you were worried about me. You don't have to, Xan. I'm a big girl now…but thanks, I think." She smiles, because for some reason, the thought that Xander called because he was thinking, and worrying, about her, sends this gigantic spark up her spine and has her feeling incredibly important.

"You…you're welcome." Xander replies and she thinks this is a big step for them both. Towards what, she has no freaking clue. She just knows that it makes her feel nice on the inside, and that's what counts, right? She hasn't completely burned all her bridges.

"Bye."

"Bye, Xander." She says. She's about to hang up, actually, the phone is halfway from her ear.

"Faith, hold on!" Xander yells and she brings the phone back to her ear. "I, um, do you…God…"

Something has Xander tongue tied, and Faith's nervous. Nervous because she's starting that stupid thing where she's hoping for something and is about to be rejected in about a moment, because she burned that particular bridge a very long time ago.

"Are you trying to ask me on a date or something when it all blows over?" Faith asks, trying to push down the dreading feeling.

"Is that a bad idea?" Xander asks, and relief floods her system.

She makes a silent promise right then. If she's getting this second chance with Xander, she's going to do right by him. No, she's going to do righter-than-right. She's going to be so much better to him than she was for Wood, and that in itself says a lot. She's going to try, because it's Xander.

"I can think of a few reasons for why it isn't." Faith says in reply.

The sooner they find Dawn, the better for her.


	3. In Dreams

**One Last Time**

**Notes/Summary: **Written for the Angel Ficathon Two. Requirements will be posted at the end of the story. It's been a few months since the end of Not Fade Away. Angel's in New York, helping Faith out with his blue shadow, Illyria. Something's rising and it can only lead to…goodness? I seriously doubt that. And this fic is no pairing, on Angel's part at least.

**Chapter Three: In Dreams**

They've beaten him down, but there's no way in hell he's going to stay that way. He rises, like a champion, fists flying and kicks hitting targets. His attackers are after one thing, he's sure of it. They want to make sure he doesn't find Dawn until after she's fulfilled her purpose.

_Sorry to disappoint_, he thinks sarcastically, slamming a fist into a figure's face and watching the body slam into a wall. He throws more similar hits and then all that's left is one attempting to leave.

"Nuh-ah-ah…" he rushes after the mysterious being, catching him by the collar. Angel lifts him off his feet, holding him against the wall. "Why did you just attack me?"

"I'll die first."

"You'll probably die either way." Angel replies. He slams the demon into the wall, hearing the gasp of pain and seeing it wince. "So, I'd advise you to spill."

"You know why, vampire."

"Dawn Summers."

The demon sneered at Angel. "The Key. It's time has inevitably run out. Soon, there will be no _Dawn Summers_, as you call it."

One of Angel's hands enclose tighter about the demon's neck. "If you harm her-"

"Harm it?" It laughs, even with a lack of oxygen to its lungs. "We will only make sure it is in the right place at the right time."

Another demon, that Angel hadn't noticed, hits him from behind and the demon he'd held to near death spits out, "Stay away, vampire. You will only complicate things. It is in everyone's best interest if you do not get involved…for now."

The demons disappear as Angel gets to his feet. He watches them go, knowing that he won't be needing the warning. He's officially convinced that Dawn is in serious trouble. Enough trouble for demons to look into ways to keep him away.

-

The sound of footsteps takes away the notion of sleep that she had been toying with moments ago. Her eyes are wide and strands of hair fall in her face as she sees a robed figure enters the room, taking out a set of keys.

She figures that if she made an attempt to run that she'd have about five minutes before she'd be caught. The only thing that keeps her from putting her plan into action is the quickness at which the demon places the tray of food before locking the cage back.

The demon then looks at her. "It is of no use, Key. Dali must return. Your time is up."

Ironically, somewhere in her she knows exactly what he means. Somewhere inside her, she understands that this is something she's supposed to do, that's supposed to happen. She knows exactly who Dali is…destiny's a funny thing and more often than not, it throws a bunch of screwballs your way. It was just pure bad luck that Dawn was getting a bunch of them in one week.

She pulls the tray close slowly, not trusting the demon and never taking her eyes of it. It watches as she lifts the cup from the tray and takes a small sip. Water. She takes another sip, sighing in relief at the fading away of the dryness in her throat.

Hunger fills her being and she picks up the sandwich without hesitation. She takes a bite, savoring the taste; she doesn't know when's the next time it will actually occur to them to feed her. She only knows that this is her first meal since being locked in the cage and that she's been very near starving to death.

"You said my time is up." Dawn looks at the demon as it watches her eat. "What do you mean?"

"You already know." Is all the demon says, making Dawn let out a frustrated sound.

"Yeah, yeah," she mutters, taking another bite. _How about filling in the rest of me?_

_-_

It's been days since Faith told her, yet she still cannot believe that the key has been within her reach for five months. If she'd known, she is certain, much certain, she'd have taken advantage, used the key to find the last vestige of her power.

Only that would be deemed as selfish, evil. And she is a warrior of good, in Wesley's honor. The real Wesley. Not the corporeal imposter that frequents her bedroom when she is alone and spews out warnings she doesn't understand, and speaks to her more than her Wesley. Only, Wesley is dead. She's sure of it. She watched him go.

She's never had a moment similar to this. A moment of intense contemplation. Her head hurts from just the thought of Wesley, and even as she stops thinking of him, the pain increases.

She falls to her knees, grasping her head with both hands as the pain increases. She nearly growls because it is just so much.

"You are _so_ weak, do you know that?" she stands before Illyria as her tormentor, face twisted in a scowl. Her hair is long, red, and green eyes flash viciously. "Stop worrying about Wesley. Get off your ass, and get your true self back. You're supposed to be Illyria, great god king-blah blah blah-of the primordium. Stop acting human, and start acting like you're _great_."

Suddenly she's gone and so is the headache. Illyria slowly pushes herself to her feet and thinks a bit about what the unknown _not really_ female has just told her.

_Good advice_, Illyria concludes. Wesley, real or not, is of no importance. He is only her distraction from the bigger picture. She must find Dawn, and she must once again become the powerful Old One she really is.

-

"May, it's Faith." She says into her phone as she breezes through the front doors. "The faster you get ready, the better it is for everyone involved."

May laughs, grabbing her purse from her desk. "By the time you get up here, I'll be ready."

"Thank God." She closes her phone, stepping onto the elevator and closing her eyes as she leans back.

Finding Dawn's gotten a little bit tougher. Angel doesn't think that the demons attacked him last night are directly connected, but he does think that they're trying to prevent the search for Buffy's sister.

Throughout their min-meeting, Illyria remained strangely quiet, only responding when a question was directed her way. It continues to make Faith frown to think of it and she's frowning now, only taken out of her thoughts by a (very unwanted) voice.

"Faith."

She opens her eyes and instantly wishes she was somewhere else. Home somewhere else. Or maybe with Xander…somewhere in Africa…or a beach. Definitely a beach. There's something to be said about the ideas of Xander without a shirt…

She's smiling, maybe a bit goofily, and Wood's staring at her. Once she notices all of this, she frowns. "What?"

"I asked how the search was going. For Dawn," he adds when a look of recognition fails to show on her face.

"Oh. Um. It's…it's going. I'm just meeting May for lunch." Faith says stiffly, her eyes raising to her numbers. They're at floor eleven and she's going to the twentieth.

"Oh. Where are you going?"

Faith's hoping he doesn't ask to join them, because she'd really prefer to not have him there. They're at floor twelve.

"Just that pizza place a couple blocks away." She replies, watching Wood's face slightly wrinkle. He hates that place, which is exactly why she mentions it.

"Have fun." Wood says. Then: "I heard Xander was coming to New York."

Faith suddenly turns to face him. "Wood, what are you playing at?"

She doesn't do small talk. She doesn't like it. Small talk is something people do when they don't really want to have a conversation with someone and are just trying to fill up space and time.

"Getting at?" he echoes. "I'm not getting at anything."

"You're sure about that?" Faith asks. She's giving her suspicious look, because she really has no reason to believe half the crap that comes out his mouth.

"Look, Faith, I don't know what Angel or his Blue Freak have you thinking, but-"

"Okay, one, lay off Ria. She may be blue and weird and everything, but she can kill you, so I wouldn't call her that to her face. Two-Angel told me nothing. I left because I wanted to. As you've noticed, Angel kept the nice spacious office he was bribed with."

"So now we bribed him, Faith?"

Floor nineteen, Faith notices as she yells, "It's exactly what I think! And, for the record, if Xander does come to New York-and he will, he'll most likely end up on a date with me."

The doors of the elevator open to the twentieth floor, and there stands May, eyebrow raised as she catches the last part. "Looks like I made it just in time."

"Um…yeah…can we just go?" Faith asks, aggravated from the last few moments she's spent in Wood's presence. Never had she had to deal with an ex on a nearly day-to-day basis before. How the hell did Buffy handle that crap?

"Sure. See ya, boss." May says to Wood, stepping on as he exits, grinning as the doors close. "So," her attention is on Faith. "What's this about Xander Harris and you?"

Faith gives her a bright grin.

-

She reappears in her apartment in England. It's furnished nicely, suited for her. She'd bought it after she and Kennedy relocated back to headquarters. She takes a moment to remember her surroundings, and then lets out a slight sigh, rolling her head on her shoulders.

"Kennedy?" she calls out, entering their bedroom. She sees with satisfaction that the brunette is still feeling the effects of the sleeping spell she'd been placed under. Less suspicion for her and everyone else involved this way. It also means Willow doesn't have to kill Kennedy; she had liked it while it lasted. But things are different, and would be different and they wouldn't know each other anymore.

The phone rings and she leaves her bedroom, hurrying out to the kitchen. She grabs the phone off the hook with a bit of flare and places the receiver to her ear; she already knows who it is. "Red here."

"Nice to see you using the code name." His voice is familiar, as is the accent and she can imagine him smirking as he leans on a phone booth in Australia.

"Gotta do something, right, Will?" She asks, grinning now that she knows who she's talking to. She takes a seat at her counter. "How's the Aussie country?"

"Very Aussie." He replies dryly. "Get down to business, Red." He practically demands.

She rolls her eyes softly. "Okay. I hurried it along, like you suggested."

"Had a talk with Blue, then."

"Yep." She pops the 'p.' "She'll do it, I'm sure of it."

There's a knock on her door. She stands and walks towards it slowly. "Hold a sec, Will." She looks in the peep hole and spies Xander standing in her hallway.

"Will?"

"Company?"

"Yeah. Call you back later?" She asks.

"I'll call you."

She turns the phone off and tosses it back onto the couch before opening the door. Xander grins at Willow and gives her a hug before entering the apartment; Willow wonders what he'd do if he knew what she was up to.

-

Spike hangs up the phone, pulling out a pack of cigarettes. He's taken up smoking since they escaped the alley. In his chase of Gunn. The only thing he's grateful for is the fact that he has yet to have run into Buffy. A disaster that would be, considering that he no longer wants anything to do with her-always have your eyes on the big picture, right?

Be grateful for small favors, he thinks to himself as he watches the club across the street. As he leans on the payphone, it occurs to him that he really needs to get a cell phone, though he's not sure how much longer he'll need it once they go for the big war. The End.

The one person he's been following for five months leaves the building and he narrows his eyes, then stepping off the sidewalk to cross the street and follow him down the dark street. It's almost dawn, and he figures he'll have to call it a night sooner or later, unless he can manage to step things up in Red's plan.

Gunn's ahead of him, unknowing-maybe he does know that Spike is following him, as he bypasses the last of the industrial district and nears an abandoned warehouse. Spike pauses a moment and watches him slip inside, almost unnoticeably. Then Spike follows.

He nears the door, and pauses for another moment to listen and at least get an idea of what he's about to walk into. He can hear voices, and gets the feeling that Gunn isn't the only vampire in the warehouse. But there are two humans.

"I've arranged for a plane to leave the airport in a half hour." It's a female voice, one Spike's never heard before, but has some authority, obviously.

"We're going to New York?" Gunn asks. "Angel's there."

"Oh, but the one who hunts, hunts, hunts, knocks at the door." A lilting voice responds with a bit of a playful edge. Dru. Of course. _It figures_, Spike thinks. It really does.

"What?" Gunn asks. "She's not coming with us, is she?"

The female's, "Not if I can help it" is drowned out by another familiar voice's, "Spike's here."

It's amazing, in retrospect, how many people you think are dead and gone that really aren't, Spike thinks. Wesley working for the enemy, or-

"Which would you rather deal with, Gunn?" Wesley continued.

Spike has heard enough by now, and he enters the warehouse, causing the four occupants to look at him. Drusilla claps her hand gleefully, saying that the hunter's here, at which point it then occurs to Wesley how much more accurate Drusilla was being.

Spike raises and eyebrow at them, because it's much more fun to nonchalant about the whole thing, and says, "Is this a private party, or can anyone join in on the fun?"

-

He's sleeping on his side, on a hard cold surface when he awakes. This isn't right, he thinks, slowly climbing to his feet.

He takes a look around, his eyes catching on the slabs of stone in the center of the room. Eyes narrowed, he nears it every so slowly, suspicious even as it seems to be deserted.

"You really shouldn't be here, Angel." She says from her stance behind him. He turns around to face to origin of the voice.

"Dawn."

She smiles slightly. "Hey." She looks over his shoulder and then back at him, pausing. "I did mean what I said just now. You shouldn't be here. Not now, not ever. It's going to change everything. It'll make everything harder for us."

"What do you mean?" he asks her, brow furrowed.

Her gaze once again lifts to just over his shoulder and, as if distracted, she walks past him, towards the altar he'd first seen. "Oh, you'll see."

Angel hurries to catch up to her, but she disappears and he slows to a stop as he finally nears one of two altars. There's a body on it. A very familiar, very much struggling, body as she is pinned and bound to it. A sacrifice.

"Dawn," he breathes.


	4. A Bad Feeling

**One Last Time**

**Chapter Four: A Bad Feeling**

Willow sees Xander off without so much of a problem, playing the supportive friend as he tells her the possibility of him and Faith dating. She smiles, and nods, and tells him that Buffy will come around, before watching him leave so that she can go about her business.

After another call from Spike, she puts the next part of her brain child into action. She goes to Rome to see Buffy with one quick spell.

The slayer is sitting in Dawn's room, looking as if she's lost the one thing in the world that's meant for her. Only it isn't. Dawn isn't. Dawn was given to Buffy to protect her; she never does it well enough, does she?

"Buffy," Willow says, softly, once again falling into the slot of the supportive friend.

Buffy looks up. "Oh, hey, Will." She tries to smile, but fails. "What brings you by?"

"I thought I'd give you a heads up."

"About what?"

"Xander and Faith are getting mushy. He's going to New York in a few days to see her." Willow says. Then, "There's something else."

Buffy stands, not able to imagine what could be worst than her best friend dating a girl who wished she'd killed her. "What?"

"They're not going to be able to find Dawn."

"How…how do you know?"

Willow grins, slowly. Before Buffy can see it coming, Willow swings a lamp at her full force, and she's knocked down. She lies unmoving and Willow pouts at her inert form.

"Aww, Buffy, Dawnie's expired."

-

"Kill me." She almost begs the woman – demon – that dressed her in what she's pretty sure happen to be sacrificial robes. She's clean, fed, and dressed properly. A good time to die, right?

The symbol, the same one from the book, is painted on her chest. It would make sense; you want to kill the sacrifice on the first try, make sure you get the heart, right?

She's accepted fate. She's going to die. Angel, Buffy, Faith, Illyria – no one's going to find her, and she's going to die and bring the world to an end. Again. Only this time is for real, and makes last time look like practice.

Wesley appears in the mirror, instead of the demonic woman. "Glad to see you doing things our way, Dawn."

"Did I have a choice?" She bites out.

"No. But we're doing this the easy way."

"The easy way?" She asks harshly, not turning around. "If this is the easy way, what the hell is the hard way?"

"Oh, don't be bitter." He says. "To tell the truth, if Willow hadn't suggested it, we wouldn't be doing this. Willow happens to be the brains behind this all."

Dawn's brain slowed to a near-stop. This entire time she was missing, and Willow had known, had not done anything about it, had not saved her, had been the damn inspiration. Had gotten her into this mess to begin with.

"Betrayal happens all the time, doesn't it?" He's right behind her, his eyes meeting hers in their reflections, his hands on her bare shoulders. "Love leads to betrayal. Just look at history."

"I'm done already. Nothing I think matters anymore. Nothing at all matters anymore."

"Liar." He whispers in her ear. "You don't strive to live _for_ Andrew anymore…" he became a bit slighter and shorter. Andrew. "Just maybe, _maybe_, you strive to die and be with me."

"Don't you even – "

"It's not me." Andrew says, crossing to face her and block her view of herself. "It's your imagination. Just one of the perks." A bit taller and bleached blond. "I'm only whoever you heart desires to see at a particular moment, Bit." He turns to look at his reflection and sees the familiar bleached blond. He looked at her. "Didn't know you cared so much."

Her face twists in a way that can only be deemed as unnatural. "Stop it." She whispers, going deathly pale by the minute.

"Or what?" he says in her ear, Andrew again. "You love me. You loved all of us, each in a different way." His lips ghost hers before he pulls back, grinning as she stares at him, wide-eyed. "You give me strength, and I only feed off it. Like a parasite, I suppose."

"You don't know the first thing about me, then." Dawn says stubbornly. "No one does."

Wesley has to hand it to her; she's still going strong. He smiles humorlessly. "Ah, yes, well, does anyone ever truly know anyone else? We all have lies, secrets, and we deceive each other. Even the little ones count. Even if we deceive ourselves, it counts. So, with all do respect, it's in our nature, and, in case you hadn't noticed yet," he makes a big show of pausing, "I was resurrected as a demon."

Dawn doesn't reply and Wesley steps to the side, walking around her. Dawn reaches out and catches his wrist, turning him to face her. "So, what; all that good-triumphs-over-evil-in-the-end is a load of bullshit?"

"No." Dawn watches him intently, letting go of him slowly. "It's all a war, Dawn. Life is a war, filled with little battles. Let's face it. There is no end. If this world fell into utopia or hell tomorrow, there'd be another, doing as we do. Fighting. Good versus evil." He turned and walked away from her, leaving the room.

Dawn stares after him, tears in her eyes and her face expressionless as he disappears out the door. A moment later, she drops into a chair and stares unseeingly at a wall.

-

She's being followed. She's scented her stalker an hour ago and, after waiting in anticipation of an attack, she only wants to know its purpose. In short, she's become impatient.

A twig suddenly snaps behind her and she swings around, catching the unknown person by the throat. "Who are you?" When the figure doesn't answer because of a lack of breath, she lets go. A powerful feeling floods her being as they lay gasping. "I ask again. Who are you?"

The figure, a woman, glares at the Old One and then climbs to her feet. She adjusts her clothing. "That's not important."

"Then what is?"

"The Key. You want it. I may know where it is. The catch is, you have to do something for us."

Illyria contemplates the wisdom in her betraying Angel and Faith for power, yet she cannot find any faults in it. She has tried things their way, yet she grows sick of the humanity forming inside her own heart. She cannot stand it any longer. Even if in Wesley's honor.

"Something for you?"

"Yes." The woman nods. "Something that we only believe you have the strength to do. You do this, and you get your key."

The idea is tempting, more than desirable. Illyria calculates carefully what the error would be in stabbing the people she's spent nearly half a year with, what the consequences of her actions would be. Once again finding none, she looks upon the woman with interest.

"I have considered your offer, and I have decided that I will accept it."

The woman smiles, slow and malicious. "Good."

-

Faith finds Angel in the kitchen, sitting at the table. She sits down across from him. "Seen Irie around lately?" she asks.

He shakes his head. "Should I have?"

"No. No. It's just…I have this bad feeling, you know? A – and, I don't know…"

"Illyria might have something to with it?" Angel asks, not really ready to admit that he's been having that feeling of distrust for the blue Old One himself.

"Maybe." Faith answers. "Anything new on the Dawn front?"

Angel considers telling Faith about his dream. He really does. But then, the thought occurs to him that maybe it was his imagination. He won't know if the dream means anything until he has it again.

"No. Nothing. The demons are being tight-lipped." Angel says instead.

"No kidding." She stands, not really looking forward to calling Xander, only because she'll have to tell him that they still haven't found a lead on Dawn. Some elite team they are. "I have to call Xander."

"Faith, we'll find her." Angel has the sudden urge to say as Faith leaves the room.

Faith stops, but doesn't turn to face him. "Well, my bad feeling says different – it's all a question of whether she'll be alive or dead." She heads for the phone.

-

Faith's just gotten off the phone with Xander when May calls her from under her desk, screaming about Illyria attacking the Council and killing everyone.

She looks for Angel, but finds him to be gone (well, it's more like she takes a look in the kitchen, doesn't see him there and figures she'll go calm Illyria down by herself), and gears up to go by herself. She recognizes that she's going to have to calm Illyria down, because this happens a lot – it's even become a part of the monthly staff meeting agenda: what to do when Illyria wreaks havoc on the Council.

Only, this doesn't seem to be the case at the Council, Faith can see when she gets there. She's flying through the air before she even knows what's happening, because Illyria has just attacked her, and her back hits the wall, plaster cracking upon impact.

She lies there for a moment, blinking rapidly as pain races through her system. She lets out a slight groan and rolls onto her stomach, pushing herself onto her hands and knees. She coughs and looks around the first floor of the Council.

Illyria's gone.

Her lungs burn and it's a chore to take a breath, but she does anyway and she stands to her feet, limping as she makes her way through the halls.

By the sounds of the screams she hears as she stumbles forward, Illyria has returned to butchering the entire staff of the New York base of the Council.

Faith decides that this is the bad feeling she had.

She increases her pace, hoping to find her. She doesn't want to seem uncaring or anything, but the only person she's actually worried about in all the twenty floors, is May. May is her only friend in this entire place. And, yes, dying Slayers is a bad thing when considering their ages, but this place feels so impersonal anyway. And she's only one girl. How will she be able to help dozens of Slayers before they meet death when facing an Old One?

"Illyria!" she screams at the top of her lungs, and it's the first time she's ever called the Old One by her name. _God, it doesn't feel right_, she thinks, hearing a scream. "Illyria!" There's another, more male scream, and she spins, kicking the first door she comes across open.

Illyria has interrupted a meeting. And the only person that Faith knows in the room is Robin Wood, currently attempting to fend Illyria off and not doing a very good job of it. Everyone else is either unconscious or dead from what Faith can see.

"Illyria."

Faith has never, ever, in all the five-going-on-six months that she's known Illyria, called the god king by her name. And this is the third time she'd done it in the past five minutes. Amazing, huh?

Blue eyes turn her way as the Old One holds Wood by the neck, essentially choking him as he struggles to get out of her grip. As far as Faith can see, he's losing the battle against passing out and death.

"Faith, I am stronger than you, yet you continuously attempt to spar with me."

"Part of the hero package," Faith shrugs. "Let him go."

"Why? You no longer hold any romantic interest in him."

"I don't need to." Faith answers and she realizes that Illyria has really learned nothing from them in five months. It was all just smoke and mirrors. Fake.

"Then he is important to you, why?"

"Because he's human. In – innocent." The slayer stammers to say, because Illyria is putting her on the spot, and because she isn't ready for half of these answers she must come up with, and because her feelings aren't that clear on Wood – she just knows that Illyria isn't supposed to kill him. Or anyone else, for that matter.

"That isn't good enough."

Faith's eyes widen as she realizes Wood's forthcoming death. She puts her legs into motion, racing forward to stop Illyria before it's too late.

She isn't fast enough.

Illyria lets go of Wood's lifeless body with a bit of a flourish, Faith within her reach. "You will never find your Key in time." She says, giving the implication that she knows where Dawn is.

"You know – "

"I will."

Faith is angry all of the sudden. She and Angel had trusted her, had believed in her goal of redemption, had stuck by her for five fucking months and this was how they were repaid? She betrayed them to the next highest bidder?

She flies at Illyria, attempting at least one punch before Illyria can get a hold of her. Faith struggles with all her strength to pry the Old One's hand from around her neck.

Illyria doesn't hesitate to toss her across the room. She flies through the air, the wall crumbling on impact and she crashes onto the conference table in the next room.

Faith takes deep breaths, the feel of blood running down her temple a somewhat new sensation for her – well, in the past year it is. Illyria stalks out the room Faith was thrown from and the Slayer sighs, her head falling back onto the collapsed table and darkness claiming her.

-

After Faith leaves to call Xander, Angel goes to his own room where he falls asleep, thinking about Dawn. These past few days have tired him out, and he figures he might at least rest some time so that he can have a better chance at finding her. Once again, he wakes up on a stone cold cement floor, confusion claiming his foggy mind until he remembers. This was where he'd seen Dawn in the first dream.

He walks forward, nearing the two sacrificial altars before him, and then she appears beside him again.

"It feels like a stupid plan at the moment." She says.

He takes a look at her and notices her half-dressed state, the only clothing on her person a skirt, a symbol painted in black over her heart. He raises his eyes to hers.

"What?"

"A good day to die. It's for the greater good, or didn't you know?" She asks, as cryptic as ever. "Always for the greater good," she murmurs under her breath, but he catches her.

"What are you – ?"

"Go up there and see for yourself." She says, giving him a slight push forward.

He looks back at her for a second before taking her instructions seriously. He looks at the first altar. As before, it's Dawn.

"I'm not the surprise – and I guess, the fact that I'm going to die without a bra or shirt on should really bother me." Dawn says from behind his right shoulder. "Did you happen to sneak a peek at the newest sacrificial offering?"

Dawn's right, Angel finds out as he looks to his left. Pinned to the stone slab, in the same fashion and dressed the same as Dawn, is –

-

"Illyria?" Dawn sits up as the blue figure nears her in the room she's been locked in to wait for death.

Illyria only gazes at her intently, pursing her lips. "Key."

"You – you know?"

"I once protected you." She replied, nearing Dawn ever so slowly. "I made you exist."

"Then – then you're here to save me?" Dawn asks nervously as Illyria stops before her.

"Oh, I seriously doubt that." The new comer says, red hair and bright green eyes her signature. She wears a smug smirk on her lips at Dawn's hope.

"Willow." Dawn's voice hardens, Wesley's words of betrayal spinning in her head.

"Hey, Dawnie." Willow continues to grin, not the least affected by Dawn. Her smile is almost charming and it makes Dawn sick. "We're gonna end the world. Wanna come?"

-

**Author's Note:** And the plot thickens…


End file.
